Getting sooo close to July 1st!!! I never thought I'd be so thrilled to see the season of hot Virginia summers. I think everyone will be glad when I'm not keeping the A/C set to 70, LOL.

The past two weeks have been rough. I've got tons more energy, but have had the worst backaches and cramping. Baby is fine, I'm just really uncomfortable. A few times we thought labor was starting, but after a couple of hours it tapered off and contractions never got closer than about 15 - 20 minutes apart.

Anyhow, clothes are washed, diapers are ready, cosleeper/bassinet is set up, and the house is as clean as it's going to get. I'm feeling ready now, no more moments of "this has to get done before she gets here," and just enjoying the last days of ds as an only child. But honestly, I wish she'd decide to join us out here even though I want her to stay put as long as she needs to. :sigh:

I had contractions and a lot of pain in my cervix yesterday for about an hour. The contractions were as strong as the ones midway through my first labor and were about every 10 minutes. After that I had a bad backache and cramping which i've had for the past week or so. I went to bed for an hour and woke up and it was all over. Now i've just been having Braxton- hicks regularly. I wish my body would go into labor. I know this will make my eventual labor easier but that's hard to think about at the time.

Everything is ready. There is no possible thing left to do. On one hand i'm ready for this baby to come. I am more scared this time that I was with my first. Maybe because I know what to expect this time. I'm also worried about my ds and how he's going to react. He will point at my belly when we talk about Parker and will kiss my belly. I guess i'm worried that I didn't give him enough time and don't want him to be pushed out of the way. I know it will all work out and he will love his brother. It's still worries me.

I've had so many mixed emotions for ds this pregnancy, but I think a lot of it stems from the fact that neither myself nor dh had siblings. For us, the interaction of more than one child is unchartered territory. Sometimes I worry about how he will handle this, but children do all the time. I expect there to be an adjustment period, but as the day gets closer and I watch as ds gets more and more comfortable with the changes already taking place {the baby things coming out and our explaining it's for Maia} I feel a little more relaxed. Thank heaven for friends and family who have recently had a second child and their experiences are still fresh in their minds!

When my ob asked if I was getting anxious or excited to have the baby, I told them it's nervewracking at times because now you know a} it's going to be a pain unlike any you've known {both good and bad} and b} it's going to alter your life in ways you can't prepare for, but you have no idea when it's coming. Ah well, all the worries disappear when that baby enters the world.

Go with the flow and don't think about it too much. Kids dont have all the baggage we have and are really adaptable. Although I am the youngest of 3 I felt like an only child many times because my sister was 10 years older than me and my brother 5 years older than me so by the time I could interact with anyone they were older doing their own thing. My parents didnt really foster a healthy sibling relationship either (heck they never really fostered anything because they both worked and my grandmother lived with us. She raised us as best she could but she was really busy with house work and such as well so there was not much time for her to be that interactive...anyway) so when I was Pg with my 2nd I was really worried about how dd would react and how I would not be able to spend that much time with her and how things would change and how sad 'she' was going to be. Well it turns out that I was more bent out of shape than she was and she was just fine. Ive had other women tell me the felt the same then they notice their kids are just fine and it was them who was stressing the situation. Im happy to say that my 3 dd's are close and love to play with each other (with your occasional hair pulling )
And Im so happy they are growing up like this because I remember my childhood and I was one lonley tot...

We went to visit friends who have a 3 week old baby today! He's so sweet and tiny. I can't believe that we'll have another little baby soon. It doesn't feel real to me until I have that baby in my arms.

Ds was really sweet with the baby. He kept trying to give the baby a cat toy, but in a gentle way. I can see that he still doesn't GET the baby thing. "Can he come play with my toys? Can he talk to me?" But he was gentle, and that is encouraging.

I do worry about our adjustment to two, also. Bedtime. How on earth is THAT going to work? And then there's the sleeping part. And the "who sleeps in which bed" thing. Lila will have a cosleeper. But I just can't imagine that there will be enough room to nurse in a queen sized bed with all four of us, plus whichever cats pile on.

But our really good news of the day - we found a Family Practicioner!! Her practice is 30 minutes from our house, but that's OK. I'm willing to drive for a progressive doctor in a small practice.

Well I worked the last 2 nights so now i'm tired and my ankles are swollen, but I don't have to work again til next monday so i'm happy. Plus ds and i had a good day today. Not everything is ready yet and i'm 38 wks but i don't expect to have this baby before 41 wks so we'll see. of course he/she could suprise me but I doubt it. I had a midwife appt today and baby is low, low, low! I'm measuring right on and my midwife is so positive. i love it! i've been having a bunch of rushes but nothing really regular or exciting. besides, this happened with ds too and he wasn't born until after 42 wks!

but there is one really cool thing. I was able to feel my cervix a few days ago. I have been trying not to get to neurotic with checking because i know it doesn't mean anything but... today i checked again and it DEFINATELY feels more open and soft! so maybe the last couple days of rushes have actually done something! I'm going to try and get up enough energy for sex tonight :*) maybe this baby will come sooner rather than later!

anyway, tomorrow I got an appointment for my son with the doc (post op visit) so hopefully things will go well there too. I'm just so happy about it because a) i thought they weren't going to have anything til next week at the soonest and b) dh can come with me and that make everything better!

I lost the mucous plug last night which I know could mean absolutely nothing but I was all giddy about it nonetheless. More and more backaches but that's it.

DH told me today he had a dream that she was born on July 4th. We'll see if he's right on that one; he hasn't made any predictions at all this time around but is convinced it will be soon. He also said he doesn't think we should do any sort of induction w/o strong medical reasons {which is my view anyway} but I was glad to hear him say it. Of course, he doesn't get why I want to do it w/o meds but at least he acknowledges it's my choice.

I couldn't find/recognize my cervix the last time I checked. I think if I make it until my mw appt next week I'll ask to be checked. I'm just so anxious/excited it would be nice to have some kind of indicator of where I am.... I can't believe tomorrow is July! I've waited for this coming month for my whole life It seems so surreal that the day is almost here. And that at 38 1/2 weeks, today could even be the day!

I am off of work indefinitely now and have been working around the house "nesting." It feels so good to be able to just walk around in a sarong all day and sit with my belly poking out.

? I've been feeling a slight "stinging" near where I *think* my cervix is now- has any one else had this (I'm wondering if it is dilation or pressure?)?

I can feel my cervix If you stand up in the bathroom, with one leg up on something, it might be easier to find it. Mine is very soft and is already open about 2-3 cm. It was like that with my DD too, and she was 9 days OD. I can actually feel the baby's head inside of the cervical opening, but of course there is the sac there still. I also read that as long as your cervix is "posterior" as in hard to find, because it's faarrr back, means that you're not going to have the baby soon. When you can feel it farther to the front, you're gonna have your baby soon.

butterflyma~Those little pinches are probably the muscles getting all stretched around the baby's head, as he/she settles into place.

About being induced, I'm glad that you are against it, mamm2addison. There are so many complications that come with affecting labour like that. I heard that labour gets a lot more painful when induced, and very few women can withstand it, and end up with epidurals. But I'm sure you know that. Nature is best left alone. Say no to drugs!

If you stand up in the bathroom, with one leg up on something, it might be easier to find it.

man i still can't find mine. it's so creepy.

but my SO did. i'm still about 2-3 cm, and very very soft + squishy.

oh wait...

Quote:

I also read that as long as your cervix is "posterior" as in hard to find, because it's faarrr back, means that you're not going to have the baby soon. When you can feel it farther to the front, you're gonna have your baby soon.

does that mean... if you have a tilted uterus/cervix too? because mine is as far tilted as it gets (oriented completely opposite of where it "should" be), which might explain why i can't ever find it myself (??).

Tried with one leg on a chair...nada. I'll find out Friday so I think I can hold out that long.

So true about induction! I ended up with an epidural after struggling on pitocin for a full day ~ it was 16 hours total on pit {after three days on gels} ~ just to get me to four to break my water. Never again! There are no natural peaks and valleys with that stuff, just contraction after contraction right on top of each other. Actually, I'm not sure the epidural did that much anyway for the pain. I think I could have gone through the birth just fine, but my body was a wreck from artificial labor. {Not to mention the difficulty with breastfeeding for the first twenty-four hours.} But since it was another doc who made the remark about not letting me go past 41 weeks and not my primary, I'm not putting too much faith in it. If there's no medical reason this little girl needs to be born before she's ready, I see no reason for them to induce. Jeez, you aren't even post-term til 42 weeks so what's the hurry? I understood the concern with the gestational diabetes, but I have no sign of any problems as I'm still checking sugars religiously and the numbers are super low. My primary has been fully versed on my opinion of inductions and, quite honestly, I worry that inducing just puts me a step closer to c-section. Anyway, that's a rant, LOL. I've got a two-year old who just weaned from his naps a week ago and it's making me kind of snarky.

just had my appt!
baby is well HR 160
measuring at 38cm
I had to do the strep swab and figured she might as well check me
my cervix is VERY high and she had trouble getting to it but she said its very soft...softer than it usually is at 36 wks and she could fit a finger in but didn't want to poke around near the bag of water...

[QUOTE=*Mamajaza*]I can feel my cervix If you stand up in the bathroom, with one leg up on something, it might be easier to find it. Mine is very soft and is already open about 2-3 cm. It was like that with my DD too, and she was 9 days OD. I can actually feel the baby's head inside of the cervical opening, but of course there is the sac there still. I also read that as long as your cervix is "posterior" as in hard to find, because it's faarrr back, means that you're not going to have the baby soon. When you can feel it farther to the front, you're gonna have your baby soon.
QUOTE]

I have been able to find my cervix since I first checked when I was 28 weeks. How easy it is to find is variable, depending mostly on how much I have been on my feet and how many contractions I have had recently though even that isn't always a good prediction. There have been times it has been REALLY easy to find (and I can feel the baby's head through my cervix! it is cool!!) and I am almost 37 weeks now and no baby yet.

My cervix is really thin, quite mooshy and the dialation depends on how hard the baby has its head on my cervix, anywhere rom 2-5cm LOL so I guess it must be stretchy

Today was my last official day of teaching, too!! Although I did agree to teach two students next week. But today was my last day of travel! Yea!!!

Tomorrow through next Wednesday, I have no official business to take care of. Dh and I are going out (by ourselves) on Friday night to use a Longhorn gift card that we got for Christmas. And we're going to shop for a few last minute items on Friday, too. Like sheets. We have two pair that fit our new mattress. And I want two clean sets to put aside for our homebirth.

My friend just lent me a dozen small fitteds, and 6 newborn fitteds. And two covers! I think we're all set for awhile on diapers. I have one last order coming in. I don't even remember what I ordered. But I think we're up to two dozen newborn fitted/contours and 6 newborn covers.

I found out yesterday that I DON'T have a UTI or bladder infection. That's the good news. But my protein was at a +1. I don't like that at all. I had preeclampsia with ds, and that just can't happen again. I haven't had ANY swelling with this pregnancy, and my blood pressure is just fine. It was up a little bit for me - 120/70 instead of my usual 90/60 or 100/70. But it is still in my normal range.

Anyone know if dehydration would affect protein count? I've been trying to get my 12 servings of water in every day, but I have still been thirsty. And my family practicioner did tell me that I was dehydrated yesterday.

Elizabeth- When I had a little protein in my urine they asked me if I had eaten recently. Apparently, that can cause protein in your urine. I hadn't just eaten but I was dehydrated at the time also. Maybe it can cause a little protein in your urine. That was 2 weeks ago and I haven't had any real problems since then. I hope you stay well.

I think I found my cervix last night after reading this thread. I've never tried before this pregnant so I am not sure. It's seemed VERY smushy and I think I was able to put my fingertip in. But I got scared and pulled back! I think all the brutal internal checks from my OB last baby caused my water to break too early (but I could be worng).

And I had about a million contractions yesterday and so much crampiness and hot flashes! It's so weird!!

I had the feeling last night and this morning that I had to make sure EVERYTHING was ready. The full moon is tomorrow. I got up before my DD this morning (7:00) My SO is here now, so I feel like once we have sex, there'll be no stopping labour, so I want everything to be ready before we do I'm still waiting for my NB diapers!!!

I'm going to have my baby unassisted by "proffessionals", but including my mother, partner, and DD. So I'm thinking of so many things that I want to have prepared. I still have to get some arnica homeopathy, clean out the tub, put a shower curtain down on the floor, make sure I have enough towels...